DUMBO — This DUMBO yogi went from Arabesques to downward dog.
Tara Glazier's dream of a life in ballet ended when she was injured while performing a pirouette. One year later she took her first yoga class and now the one-time professional ballerina runs a popular yoga studio in DUMBO.
"After my injury, I felt really defeated. I had worked my whole life with a particular goal in mind and suddenly it was gone," she said. "When I fell into modern dance in college and yoga a few years later, I found myself again and a new perspective and lot on life began."
Glazier began to dance ballet at the age of 3 and at 15 she left home to attend the North Carolina School of the Arts. By her early 20s she was dancing professionally with the Hartford Ballet. Her dance career was just about to peak when she strained the ligaments of her foot and was unable to continue ballet dancing.
The dejected ballerina turned to yoga and the "mirrors, competitiveness, pain and ego of her ballet years were replaced with a sense of community and healing," she said.
"There was a part of myself that opened - an acceptance, a vulnerability, an appreciation for who I was and not who I thought I was supposed to be," Glazier said. "Yoga helped me to find myself."
After training to become a certified Anusara and Vinyasa teacher she opened a studio in DUMBO in 2010.
Abhaya Yoga Studio is located at 10 Jay St. overlooking the East River, Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan skyline. The location alone draws yogis from all over New York to Glazier's classes.
“Abhaya is unique among New York studios for it’s beautiful space," wrote student Alexandra M. "Most of the classes are held in natural light and the view of water creates a calming and inspiring backdrop."
Abhaya has also made a name for itself as an educational center where yoga teachers from all over the country come to study and train.
Every first Thursday of the month Abhaya yoga offers a free beginners class from 8:15 p.m. to 9:15 p.m.
